Just a few days after Microsoft announced that it will stop the development of its iconic drawing tool, MS Paint, when the Windows 10 Creators Update arrives; another familiar tool will also apparently be killed off.
Software developer Adobe announced on Tuesday that it will stop the development and distribution of its Flash Player by the Year 2020.
It seems a lot of the desktop tools people have been used to for several years will come to an end due to technological advancements.
Why did Adobe decide to discontinue its Flash plugin?
Basically, web browsers have become more versatile and intelligent over the years, so much so that it already negates the capabilities of plugins.
Adobe released a statement that said, “Today, most browser vendors are integrating capabilities once provided by plugins directly into browsers and deprecating plugins,” according to a report by USA Today.
The software developer also wants content developers to adapt their material to open standards such as WebGL, WebAssembly, and HTML5, which are capable of supporting the Flash Player’s functionality.
Meanwhile, web browser giants Chrome, Firefox and Edge will eventually remove Flash support by 2020. Google revealed that only 17 percent of Chrome users visit a website that requires the Flash Player.
Is Adobe’s Flash Player no longer needed?
The Flash Player used to be a crucial part of the browser for playing videos and games among other things.
Nevertheless, the plugin has been slammed for its security risks and users have been told to remove the program from their browsers as a precaution from cyber-attacks. The plugin's security flaws have been a major concern for big technology companies over the years.
In addition, the plugin reportedly eats up a lot of battery life on mobile devices.
The late Steve Jobs criticized the plugin in 2010 for its lack of security and even decided not to include Flash on its iOS devices, which is why Apple smartphones have never supported Flash Player from the very beginning.
Meanwhile, Google and its Android devices stopped supporting Flash in 2012.
This decision by Jobs may have been a factor in the plugin’s discontinuation, according to Jeffrey Hammond, an analyst at the Forrester.
Hammond said that developers have moved their creations from the web to the mobile platform simply because it has become the more popular media for sharing their content.